


Frozen Heart

by avatar_dragon_rider



Series: Old Wattpad Stuff [2]
Category: Frozen (2013), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Crossover Pairings, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Like really slow, Major Character Injury, Slow Burn, crossposting the better-written Wattpad fics, i'm terrible at tags fml, never know how to tag things, this is actually my most popular fic on Wattpad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-29
Updated: 2017-01-29
Packaged: 2018-09-20 14:03:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 8,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9494729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/avatar_dragon_rider/pseuds/avatar_dragon_rider
Summary: The war is over, for now. Drago and his Bewilderbeast have fled the Isle of Berk, leaving it broken, crumbled and covered in ice. The dragons have all returned--along with Valka--and everyone is happy, Stoick especially. Everyone, that is, except Hiccup. During the great Bewilderbeast Battle, Astrid sacrificed her life to save Hiccup's, taking the fatal plasma blast fired by a brainwashed Toothless. Hiccup has not been the same since then, and he vowed he would never fall in love again. But that may change when he leaves Berk and someone new comes into the picture....





	1. Astrid Saves Hiccup

"He who controls the Alpha," Drago says as he points his spear at Toothless, "controls them all."

Drago's Bewilderbeast locks eyes with Toothless. He whines and roars, trying to fight the Alpha's call. Hiccup looks at Toothless concerned, asking him what's wrong, then turns to Drago. "What's goin' on?"

"Witness true strength," Drago says, remaining perfectly still. "Strength of will over others." The Bewilderbeast strengthens his call, and Toothless succumbs, his pupils now slits so tiny they can barely be seen. "In the face of it," Drago continues, "you are nothing." Drago points his spear at Hiccup, and Toothless turns to him.

"Uh, what did he just tell you?" Hiccup asks his dragon nervously, taking a step back. Toothless creeps towards his rider, his wings flared menacingly, teeth bared, snarling. Hiccup pleads with his dragon as he keeps backing up, but Toothless doesn't listen. The dragon's vision is cloudy from the brainwashing, and he can't see Hiccup clearly. "STOP! Snap out of it!" Hiccup commands, and still Toothless keeps creeping closer.

Astrid hears Hiccup's cries, and turns to see Toothless backing Hiccup against a giant wall of ice. "Hiccup!" she yells as she takes off running. She races past Stoick, Gobber and Valka, heading straight for Hiccup. She throws her axe at the side of a ship, snapping ropes and causing the mast to fall on its side. She runs up the mast as it falls and jumps off, still running to Hiccup's aid.

"Toothless no!" Hiccup yells desperately as Toothless backs Hiccup fully against the wall of ice. Toothless begins to charge a blast.

"HICCUP!" Astrid yells.

Hiccup hears her cry and turns to her, holding out his hand for her to stop. "Astrid! No!"

She doesn't get there soon enough. Toothless fires as Astrid pushes Hiccup out of the way. Hiccup rolls a few feet away from the wall from the force of Astrid's push. Astrid is blasted back into the wall, her back slamming into it. She falls to the ground, chunks of ice burying her. Stoick, Gobber and Valka immediately stop in their tracks, all unable to see who was hit.

Hiccup, currently on his hands and knees, shakes his head, trying to clear his vision and stop the ringing in his ears. He stands up, and his heart plummets when he sees Astrid, lying on the ground, perfectly still, partially covered in ice chunks.

Hiccup glances at Toothless. The dragon is panting from the intensity of the blast, still hypnotized and frozen in place. "No," Hiccup says as he races to Astrid. He pushes the ice off of her, screaming her name. Valka, Gobber and Stoick unfreeze and run to Hiccup's side.

Hiccup holds Astrid in his arms, saying her name repeatedly. Scratches are visible on Astrid's face and arms from the ice chunks. Her eyes are closed, her skin pale, and she doesn't move or make a sound to acknowledge Hiccup. When he gets no response, Hiccup lays his head on her chest, listening desperately for a heartbeat. Astrid's chest is silent and still; no pulse can be heard beneath Hiccup's ear.

Instantaneously, everything stops around Hiccup. His vision turns hazy, the world slows. He can barely feel Stoick's hand on his shoulder, or see Gobber remove his helmet and put it over his heart. "No...." Hiccup whispers as tears start spilling down his cheeks. "No no...." He buries his face in Astrid's silent chest.

Drago calls off his Bewilderbeast, and the dark Alpha releases Toothless. The Night Fury shakes his head as his pupils dilate back to their normal oval shape, and he sits down, looking at the scene before him: Stoick and Valka on either side of a sobbing Hiccup, their hands on his shaking shoulders; Gobber standing next to them, his helmet over his heart; Astrid lying cold and still in Hiccup's arms, his face hidden in her chest.

Toothless walks slowly over to them. Astrid's hand lays on the ground, pale and cold and still. Toothless noses it, whimpering slightly, which results in Hiccup nearly dropping Astrid as he pushes Toothless back; Stoick puts his large hand beneath Astrid's back to keep her from hitting the ice.

"Get away from her!" Hiccup yells hysterically at Toothless, who backs up, looking at Hiccup confused. "Go on, get outta here!" Toothless takes a step towards Hiccup, giving him a pleading look, but Hiccup replies with "Get away!"

Toothless turns and walks away, and Hiccup drops to his knees sobbing.

"It's not his fault, you know that," Valka says softly, trying to keep her voice from breaking. "Good dragons under the control of bad people do bad things."

As she says this, Drago's Bewilderbeast takes control of all the dragons, including the currently flightless Toothless. The brainwashed Night Fury tries to fly, but fails, falling to the ground. Drago uses his spear to hold the dragon down, then climbs onto his back, taking off.

"Toothless!" Hiccup yells as he tries to run after his dragon.

Valka holds Hiccup back, keeping him from going after Toothless and Drago. "No don't," she says.

Hiccup watches helplessly, tears in his eyes, as the evil army leaves, taking all of the dragons with them.

<><><><><><><>

A heavy silence rests on the battle-ridden island. The broken ship sails towards the rocks beyond, the sail ripped and torn in various places and hanging lopsided from the mast. On the ship, a white blanket covers a fallen comrade, an axe that has seen many brave battles lying on her chest over the blanket. A small coalition stands alone on the island, watching the ship sail away.

Stoick says his traditional speech for the fallen Astrid, able to conceal the lump in his throat but not the tears on his cheeks. Valka stands at his side, her hands clenching tightly the bow she holds at her side. Next to her is Fishlegs, trembling with sadness. Snotlout stands next to him, staring at the ship sailing away, trying not to let the tears fall. Ruffnut is next to him, with her brother at her side. Both have a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other, staring at the ground. Beside Tuffnut is Eret, who had turned to the riders' side after they saved his life. The great dragon trapper feels a soft sadness in his heart at the loss of the girl who taught him what he never knew about dragons, but he doesn't show it, keeping his eyes down.

Standing near the water, a stone's throw away from the others, Hiccup watches what he had hoped was his future wife sail away from him, wanting but unable to tear his eyes from the heartbreaking sight before him. Gobber hobbles up to the boy, a bow and arrow in each hand. He hands one to Hiccup, who takes it, barely acknowledging his mentor. Gobber lays a hand on Hiccup's shoulder before limping over to his place beside Stoick.

When Stoick finishes his speech, Hiccup nocks the arrow. He leans it forward to the burning pile of wood that lays at his feet (well, foot) and lights the tip of the arrow. Flames lick away at the stone tip as Hiccup raises the arrow, aiming at Astrid's ship. With trembling hands, arms shaking, tears rolling down his cheeks like salty waterfalls, he fires at the ship. The arrow finds its mark in the wood near Astrid's foot, and the fire slowly starts to spread. The others follow his lead, firing their flaming arrows. Fire now not only took Astrid's life, but accompanied her in death to the Viking heaven known as Valhalla.

All eyes turn to Hiccup as he screams, throwing his bow into the water. He drops to his knees, his face hidden in his hands. "I'm sorry, babe," Hiccup says softly, his face still buried in his hands. Stoick moves slowly over to him, laying a hand on his shoulder. He says nothing, just stands there, being there for his broken son. Hiccup, without even acknowledging his father, fights a losing battle with his tears as he speaks, loud enough for the others to hear.

"I swear," he says. "I swear on Astrid's ship...I swear I'll never love again."


	2. Getting a Grip

Three months.

That's how long it had been. Three months.

Three months since the Battle of the Bewilderbeasts. Three months since Berk was saved. Three months since Valka had returned.

Three months since Hiccup's world had fallen apart.

He remembered it vividly: Toothless backing him into the wall, charging a blast, Astrid pushing him out of the way, her lifeless body in his arms, her flaming ship sailing away from him, forever. It haunted his dreams, the memories staying behind his eyes during the day. He couldn't sleep, he couldn't eat, he was rapidly losing weight. The gray circles under his eyes were evident, as were his ribs beneath the leather armor. Everyone could see it, but all left him in peace.

The dragon races had stopped. Without their star player, the Berkians just couldn't keep them going, especially if Hiccup wouldn't participate. The boy rarely left his house, beyond the occasional flight with Toothless.

The dragon wasn't much better. He sensed Hiccup's depression, he tried to help, but nothing he did could shake Hiccup. The great dragon master was dying, slowly killing himself by starvation and lack of sleep. Toothless did everything he could to help Hiccup get through this, but nothing seemed to be working.

Three months, and Hiccup still wasn't over Astrid's death. In fact, many thought he never would be.

Hiccup had gone out flying on Toothless, trying to relieve his mind of the stress that constantly plagued him. Flying always seemed to help. It allowed him to let loose any emotion he had bottled up inside: pain, fear, rage, sadness; anything he couldn't normally show around people. He lay back on Toothless, sighing, staring up at the clouds above them. Toothless flew close to the water, catching the occasional jumping fish in his mouth.

"Why did she have to die, bud?" Hiccup asked, still staring at the sky. Toothless grumbled and glanced back at him. "Why did she have to leave? I know it wasn't your fault, bud, and I'm not blaming you, I just..." He sighed again, dejectedly. "I miss her."

Toothless purred softly, wanting ever so much to comfort his rider. He wished more than anything that the boy could understand him, but Thor only knew when and if humans would ever truly understand the dragon's language.

Hiccup sat up again, getting tired of the sun in his eyes. "Come on, bud. Let's head home." He pulled on Toothless's reins, and the Night Fury changed course, heading back to Berk.

Hiccup landed outside his house, where his father was waiting for him, standing in the doorway with his arm around his wife. "Welcome back, son," he said as Hiccup dismounted. "Your mother and I have a few things to discuss with you."

"If it's about becoming chief, you can save your breath," Hiccup replied, an icy edge to his voice. "I'm not taking over."

"Hiccup..." Valka said as she stepped forward, taking Hiccup's hands in hers. "Please, listen to me. I understand that this is a lot to take in right now, but your father's right. You're a grown man now, and everyone is waiting for you to take over as successor to your father's throne of chiefdom."

Hiccup sighed, avoiding his mother's eyes. "I'm not ready."

Stoick came down to where Valka and Hiccup stood. "This is about Astrid, isn't it?"

Hiccup nodded, still staring at the ground. Tears came to his eyes, but he refused to let them show, not in his expression or in his voice. "You don't get it....you just don't get it."

"Actually, I do," Stoick countered, laying a hand on his son's small shoulder. Valka stepped back, knowing what Stoick was getting at. She went over to Toothless and rubbed his head as Stoick led Hiccup up to the house, speaking tenderly to him so as not to set the boy off in tears.

"Believe me, son," Stoick said calmly as he walked, "I know this pain. When Cloudjumper took your mother all those years ago, I was heartbroken. I thought I had betrayed my promise to protect her. I sent out search party after search party trying to find her, and all returned empty-handed. I was sure she was dead. It killed me on the inside, but outside, I couldn't let it show. I had duties to my tribe, and to you. I couldn't let my devastation about losing Valka get in the way of my village responsibilities. The same goes for you, son. You need to let this go; you need to let her go."

"Let her go?" Hiccup stopped dead in his tracks. "Let her go?! How am I supposed to just _let go_ of the best thing that happened to me?! She was my life, Dad! She was there for me when _you_ never were! You can't just _forget_ someone like that! You can't just _forget_ the only person you ever truly loved!"

"Hiccup--" Stoick began, but before he could say anything, Hiccup had run into the house and up to his room, collapsing onto the bed and sobbing into the pillow until he finally succumbed to sleep.


	3. Castle Matters

Elsa paced her throne room nervously, her transparent cape trailing along behind her. She was both nervous and anxious; a meeting between the kingdoms was in a few hours, and she was very unprepared. It would be her first since she had taken over as queen, adding on the fact that everyone knew of her powers now. Even though they had accepted her for who she was, Elsa was still very uncomfortable with all of it.

It had been a few months since Elsa's coronation as queen. So much had happened during those few days after she struck out that Elsa's mind was foggy with memories. Lashing out at Anna during the dance, running off into the woods and accidentally setting off an eternal winter, building her ice castle (which she still visited frequently; it calmed her), freezing Anna's heart, watching her sister die then return....

It was all happening so fast, too fast for Elsa's liking.

She continued pacing her throne room until a knock came on the door. Elsa stopped pacing and turned to see Anna's head poke through the crack between the double doors, her two orange braids dangling from either side of her head. Elsa smiled to herself when she didn't see the white stripe on Anna's right braid. It helped alleviate the memory of what the elder girl had done to her little sister all those years ago, and what she had done to Arendelle only recently.

"The representatives are here," Anna announced. "Everyone's waiting for you"

Elsa nodded. "Good. Then let's get this over with." She walked down the steps to her sister. The two girls looped arms and walked together down the hall towards the meeting room.

"Are you alright?" Anna asked, looking at her elder sister. "You seem really tense."

Elsa made eye contact with Anna, just so the princess wouldn't suspect anything. "I'm fine, Anna." She gave a slight smile, and that was all the reassurance Anna needed.

As the two girls walked, Elsa couldn't help but look down at her left arm, which was draped across her body so her hand could rest on Anna's. Through the slightly transparent sleeves, Elsa could see the thin white scars on her forearm, nearly invisible unless you knew what you were looking for. Elsa had consistently self-harmed in the months following their parents' deaths, and was forced to stop when her ladiesmaids began to take notice of the bloodstains on the insides of her sleeves. The memories haunted Elsa to this very day, but she told no one, not even Anna, about her on and off depression and even suicidal thoughts.

When the girls reached the meeting room, Anna opened the door for Elsa, who walked in nervously. Anna closed the door behind her sister, leaving the meeting in peace. The representatives were sitting around the rectangular table, all eyes on Elsa. One face made the young queen smile: Queen Rapunzel, the cousin of Elsa and Anna. She was there to represent her kingdom, Corona. She stood up, as did the rest of the assembly, as Elsa passed to sit at the head of the table. "Please be seated," Elsa said calmly as she sat down. The others followed her lead.

Elsa's eyes passed over each representative in turn. First her cousin, seated next to her on her right. Then Hans's eldest brother from the Southern Isles. Three Spaniards from the three Spanish colonies to the west. Four European representatives from the four European countries Arendelle made trade with. A stately woman from France, whose English was hard to understand. One representative each from Clans Dunbroch, Dingwall, Macintosh, and McGuffen. Only two representatives were missing: the Duke of Weasletown (which was understandable since Elsa had cancelled all trade with Weasletown) and the Viking representative from Berk. Elsa raised an eyebrow at this; even though they were Vikings who spoke either heavily accented English or Norse, they were usually very punctual when it came to trade meetings.

"Has anyone had any word on the Berkian representative?" Elsa asked her party. The assembly muttered amongst themselves, asking each other the very same question. Then the French woman spoke up.

"Vee 'aven't seen ze representative since vee 'ave been here, Your Majesty," she said.

"I heard they were having some trouble with invaders," Rapunzel said, her ever-present chameleon on her shoulder.

"Invaders?" Elsa asked curiously.

One of the Spaniards spoke up: "I heard rumors from Trader Johann that some _loco_ amputee dragon master was behind it. We just laughed, it was _muy gracioso_ for a tall tale."

The assembly seemed to find it funny too, for they all laughed until Elsa pointed a finger at the ceiling and shot ice at the chandelier. Everyone immediately went quiet.

"Enough," Elsa said calmly, no anger in her voice whatsoever. "We have business to discuss."


	4. Leaving

Toothless peeked in through Hiccup's window. The young man had a wicker basket on his bed and was packing various items in it: clothes, food, oil for his leg (in case the gears got stuck again), along with various other necessary supplies. The dragon tilted his head and whined, asking a question that Hiccup clearly understood.

"I can't stay here, bud," he said solemnly, without looking up from his work. "It's too painful for me here. We have to leave. Now."

<><><><>

"You can't keep pushing him, Stoick," Valka said. She was downstairs talking to her husband about Hiccup's outburst the other day. Valka sat in her usual chair while Stoick paced in front of her. "You need to give him time. It's only been three months."

"Three months since he should have taken over as chief!" Stoick countered. "That stubborn boy--"

"He's in pain, Stoick," Valka interrupted. "He just lost the love of his life in one of the most brutal ways possible. Surely you of all people understand that. Don't tell me you didn't go through the same thing when Cloudjumper took me."

"It wounded me, I won't lie about that," Stoick said. "But I didn't let it get to me. I had duties to worry about. I had an infant son to take care of, along with an entire village on my shoulders. If I can handle losing my wife with all those responsibilities weighing on me, then he should be able to handle losing Astrid without those responsibilites."

Valka sighed and stood up, walking over to her husband. She took one of his hands in both of hers, sandwiching it between them. "You need to be less forceful with him," she said calmly. "You said it yourself: he's a mirror image of me. You need to take things slow with him. Let him recover before you push more onto him."

Stoick sighed. "I suppose you're right."

Valka kissed his cheek. "Aren't I always?"

Stoick just smirked in response.

<><><><>

Fishlegs paced the Dragon Academy. Even though training and races had stopped since Astrid's death, the young adults still used the place as a prime hangout and discussion area. Fishlegs paced back and forth while Meatlug slept in the corner; the Twins for once were not fighting, but lounging on the heads of their Zippleback; and Snotout sat on a barrel, sharpening the spikes on his mace with Hookfang curled up behind him, snoring.

"This is so pointless!" Snotlout complained. "Why are we even here?"

"Because Hiccup asked us to be," Fishlegs answered simply. "He said he needed to talk to us."

"Took him three months to come out of that shell of depression, did it?" Snotlout snapped, clearly pissed that he had been woken from his so-called "beauty sleep" just to listen to Hiccup whine and complain some more.

Since Astrid had died, Hiccup had rarely talked to anyone, save for a few complaints about his father and losing Astrid. Fishlegs was usually the one to comfort him in these situations. And it annoyed the living crap out of Snotlout.

Fishlegs glared at him. "Don't tell me you weren't upset too when Astrid died."

"Sure I was upset, but I didn't hide in my room sobbing all day and--!"

"Guys, knock it off," Hiccup said as he walked into the Academy, Toothless trailing behind him. Hiccup had a basket sack over his shoulder, and he looked paler than normal.

"Hiccup?" Fishlegs asked, walking over to Hiccup. "Are you alright?"

"No," Hiccup answered, looking anywhere but at Fishlegs. "I'm leaving."

"What?!" everyone at the Academy said in sync. The Twins shot to their feet and Snotlout jumped down from his barrel.

Fishlegs took a step back, shocked. "Why?"

"I can't stay here anymore," Hiccup said, trying to swallow the massive lump that had formed in his throat. He didn't want to do this; he couldn't just leave his friends behind--who knew when or even if he would ever come back to them--but he couldn't stay. It was killing him. Toothless nosed his head under his rider's arm as Hiccup continued: "I can't, this is killing me."

"What do you mean?" Fishlegs asked calmly, stepping forward.

"I see her everywhere," Hiccup said. "She's haunting me, and she's rooted here. Everything here reminds me of her. I can't...I can't do this anymore." Hiccup looked at Fishlegs, his eyes shining with tears.

Fishlegs put a hand on Hiccup's shoulder and embraced his friend, careful not to crush Hiccup since the larger boy was several times bigger and stronger than Hiccup was. Hiccup hugged Fishlegs back, burying his face in his friend's shoulder to hide his tears. Ruffnut and Tuffnut joined the hug, shortly followed by Snotlout.

They stayed that way for a few minutes before Hiccup pulled out of the hug. "Thanks guys," he said, wiping his eyes. Fishlegs gave him a soft smile and nodded, fighting tears of his own.

"Stay safe, Hiccup," Fishlegs said.

Hiccup smiled slightly. "When am I not safe?"

"You really want us to answer that?" Snotlout said, smirking.

Hiccup gave his cousin a half-hearted smirk back before getting on Toothless with his pack. "Thanks for everything guys. I'll miss you."

"We'll miss you too," Tuffnut said, his arm around his sister, who nodded with tears in her eyes. Even they loved Hiccup, no matter how much he annoyed them or bossed them around.

"Goodbye." Hiccup smiled one last time at them before taking off, leaving Berk behind him.


	5. Traveling

Hiccup and Toothless flew through the clouds, unsure of where exactly they were going. All Hiccup cared about was getting away from Berk and the terrible memories it held. Currently, the young rider was laying back on Toothless, his eyes closed but not asleep, for he was afraid of the nightmares he knew would come. Despite being the same one every time, the nightmare seemed to get worse each time he dreamt it.

Hiccup felt safe up here, in the cold, gray clouds with his best friend beneath him, flying him away from his troubles and hopefully to someplace better than the place he had been in for the past three months. He had no idea where they were heading, nor what the future held for them; all Hiccup wanted was to move on with his life, but something just refused to let him do that. He wanted a fresh start, someone to help him forget his pain and heal him.

Boy, was he in for a shock.

<><><><><>

Anna walked with Kristoff up the mountain. Olaf the live snowman sat on Sven's back, the reindeer plodding along behind his master with his tongue dangling from his mouth. Anna wore her blue winter dress with the pink cape, and Kristoff wore his usual gray furs. The four of them were on their way to Elsa's ice palace, checking to make sure the palace was still in good shape. Anna knew her sister liked to know ahead of time if the palace was damaged so she could repair it when she visited later in the day. Anna didn't mind; she was happy to help her sister with anything and everything, and always jumped at the chance to come with Kristoff to gather ice to sell, so it was never out of their way to pop by the palace to check on the structure.

Anna glanced at her boyfriend, who was pulling the small sled up the slight hill that was blanketed with snow. He seemed to be struggling, but she knew he would never say if he was. "Are you sure you don't want Sven to pull it?" she asked him.

"No, I'm fine," Kristoff replied simply with a slight huff of air to catch his breath. They had decided to leave the big sled at the foot of the mountain, since it was harder to get up the hill to the palace.

"Are you sure?" Anna pressed. "Because we can always--" She stopped when she heard Sven growl behind her and looked back at him. The reindeer had stopped dead in his tracks, looking around at the sky and growling, his eyes narrowed. "What's up with him?" Anna asked curiously, a slight nervous tone to her voice. Sven rarely acted like this, and when he did, it usually meant trouble.

"I don't know," Olaf said as he hopped off of the reindeer's back, landing clumsily on the snow below. His little snowball feet were off-balance underneath him, so he tilted far to the left when he landed; it's a wonder he didn't fall over. The little snowman waddled around to Sven's front and waved his stick arms, trying to get Sven's attention. The miniature snow flurry danced above Olaf's head as he moved, following his movements. "Sven! Hey Sven! What's the matter buddy?"

"He's not gonna answer you, Olaf," Kristoff said tiredly. He looked around, trying to see what his pal was so agitated about, when he saw it. The shadow of something he thought was extinct or the stuff of myths, legends, and dreams. The clouds blocked out most of it, but the silhouette was clear.

A dragon was heading straight for them, and had no intent of slowing.


	6. A New Friend

Hiccup had no idea what had gotten Toothless so riled up. Normally he was calm when they flew, only getting antsy if there was a threat nearby. But there was nothing around them but the same gray clouds there had been when they entered the area.

"Toothless?" Hiccup asked. "What's wrong bud? What is it?"

The dragon didn't respond, but continued his nosedive towards the ground below. Obviously he had seen something he didn't like, and that worried Hiccup.

Toothless pulled up right at the last second, landing in the snow in front of two people. One was a girl with subtle orange hair pulled into two braids, one on either side of her face. Her face was somewhat circular, with bright green eyes and freckles splashed across her nose and cheeks. She was dressed for the weather, apparently used to this climate. The other person was a blonde man who was slightly taller than Hiccup, dressed in gray and black furs that suited the weather. He was pulling a large sled along behind him. A large reindeer was beside the sled, its mouth curled up in a snarl, its gaze fixed on Toothless. Toothless snarled back at the group, and every one of them took a step back.

"Uh..." Hiccup was at a loss for words. "Sorry. He--he doesn't normally do that." Hiccup dismounted his dragon, and both of the strangers immediately fixed their gaze on Hiccup's prosthetic. Hiccup fought not to roll his eyes; sooner or later, everybody asked about the leg.

"I didn't know dragons still existed," the girl spoke up, shifting her gaze from Hiccup's leg back to Toothless. "I thought they were extinct." She took a tentative step towards Toothless, who growled causing the girl to step back again.

"Who are you?" asked the blonde man, who seemed to be less friendly towards new people as the girl.

"My name is Hiccup. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III." Normally Hiccup didn't like to reveal his full title to strangers, but something about them made him feel unusually comfortable.

"Hiccup...an odd name," the man said. This time, Hiccup gave into the urge to roll his eyes. "Where are you from?"

"My homeland is Berk, an island up north near Scotland." He decided to use present tense, so they wouldn't ask questions. "I'm the chief's son."

The girl smiled. "I'm Princess Anna of Arendelle." She curtsied in respect to Hiccup's title, and the Viking bowed to hers. "And this is Kristoff--" she gestured to the man to her left, "--and Sven." She looked over at the reindeer, who snorted as he stepped closer to Toothless.

"This is Toothless." Hiccup gestured to his Night Fury, who circled Sven as the reindeer circled him, each animal sniffing the other's rear end. Hiccup and Anna couldn't surpress their laughter. Even Kristoff couldn't help but smirk.

The comical moment was broken, however, when a small snowman stuck his head out from behind the sled. "Who's the tall guy?" it asked, making Hiccup jump in surprise.

"It can talk!" Hiccup exclamed. Sure, he had seen his fair share of weird things in his two decades of life, but never had he encountered a talking snowman before.

"Oh, this is Olaf," Anna said, kneeling down beside the snowman and smiling. "My sister made him from snow a few months back and brought him to life with her powers."

"Powers?" Hiccup asked in confusion.

"Yes, my sister has ice powers," Anna explained as she stood up. "She's the Queen of Arendelle, my older sister. You should come with us to the palace, I'm sure she'd love to meet you."

"Anna, remember what I told you about strangers," Kristoff whispered into Anna's ear, but loud enough that Hiccup coud hear.

"I promise I'm not a threat to your kingdom," Hiccup said with a respectful bow, "and it would be an honor to meet the queen."

Anna smiled brightly. "Well come on then!" She began skipping back down the hill, seeming extremely cheerful. Kristoff cast Hiccup a distrustful look before following her; apparently he had heard of the Vikings' reputation as pillagers and barbarians. Toothless chased Sven and Olaf down the hill, having a ball, and Hiccup followed the princess after a slight hesitation, hoping he wasn't getting himself into trouble.


	7. Meeting Elsa

Elsa was back to pacing her throne room again. She had a habit of doing that when she was nervous. Anna and Kristoff had left a while ago, and they hadn't come back yet. The meeting had ran for an hour with no sign of the Berkian representative, which greatly worried Elsa. Her thoughts wandered to Berk, a place she herself had never been to but longed to visit. She was told that the people were friendly and peaceful (by Viking standards) and the sunsets were a sight to behold.

The young queen jumped when she heard a knock at the door. "C-Come in..." she said, trying not to sound nervous.

Anna opened the door, looking cheerful as ever. "You have company, Elsa!" she announced, a little too cheerfully.

"Company?" Elsa asked, confused. "What company?"

In answer, Anna opened the door. In stepped Kristoff, followed by a young man Elsa had never seen before. He was dressed mostly in leather, with two loops on each leg that Elsa could just not discern the purpose of no matter how hard she tried. His chest plate and shoulder pads had symbols on them that looked vaguely draconic. Elsa had never seen a dragon in the flesh before, but she had seen pictures of them and heard about them. The dragons this young man had pictured on his armor (at least that's what it looked like) didn't look like any dragons Elsa had seen before. What really drew the young queen's attention, however, was the metallic prosthetic that replaced the lower part of the young man's left leg, about halfway below the knee.

Elsa raised an eyebrow in question. "Who is this?"

"Elsa," began the young princess, "meet Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, heir to the throne of Berk. Sir Hiccup, meet Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

Hiccup knelt on one knee in front of Elsa, bowing his head respectfully. "Your Majesty," he said simply.

Elsa couldn't help but smile. "Queen Elsa is fine, kind sir," she said. "And you need not bow before me. Your title does not befit it."

"And your title does, my lady," Hiccup answered as he returned to his feet. The way he dictated "my lady" piqued Elsa's curiosity. He said it so formally, pronouncing each syllable in a way that suggested he had once said it differently to someone else. Elsa couldn't help but wonder who.

She pushed the thought to the back of her mind, something she was well-trained in doing. "Are you the Berkian representative we missed at the meeting an hour ago?"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "I was not aware I was needed at a meeting."

"Anna, could we have a few moments alone?" Elsa asked, her eyes moving to meet her sister's. Anna simply nodded and stepped out of the throne room with Kristoff. Once the door had closed, the queen looked again at Hiccup. "You do come from Berk, yes?"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "Considering I'm its heir, that's kind of a given, my Queen."

Elsa couldn't help but snicker. "Yes, of course. And you were not aware there was a trade meeting today?"

"No, no I wasn't. Berk's been kind of...out of touch recently. We suffered a massive attack on our island a few months back, and almost the whole village and nearly half our resources were completely destroyed. We've been pretty busy trying to get back on our feet. The only outside people we've corresponded with are our close allies, for supplies of course."

"Ah, I see." Elsa nodded in understanding. "Well, many of your trade partners are still here. The meeting ended about an hour ago, but the representatives are still here for the dinner later this evening. If there are any you need to speak to--"

Hiccup cut her off. "That would be great, actually. Who all is here?"

Elsa was about to reprimand Hiccup for interrupting her, but stopped herself as she remembered his title was equal to hers, guest in her castle or not. "Queen Rapunzel of Corona, the four Scottish Clans from up north," Elsa could have sworn she saw the young Viking's expression change to something akin to a child caught stealing from the kitchens. Nevertheless, she continued: "Spain, France, Europe, and the Southern Isles. Any of them close allies with your island?"

Hiccup was silent for a minute before responding. "Corona has always been on good terms with Berk. Can't say the same for other Vikings though. Big fat no-thank-you on the Scottish Clans. Been there, done that, thank you very much."

Elsa fought back a giggle. Hiccup was oddly funny, very different than other men she'd met (of course, that's really not saying much as Elsa hadn't met that many young men).

Hiccup continued, oblivious to Elsa's inner emotions: "Europe: most definitely, depending on the country. France: absolutely. I have been working on my French." He smirked as if this was some big accomplishment. Elsa unintentionally took notice of the charming gap in his front teeth. "Spain: maybe, depending on the section of the country that's represented. Southern Isles: probably not. Too far from the archipelago. Did I miss anyone?"

"No, I believe you got them all." Elsa stepped down from the platform she'd been on, descending the stairs to join Hiccup. Now that she was truly face-to-face with him, she realized how shockingly short he was, compared to the other 7-foot Vikings she'd seen at her father's trade meetings. "Come with me; I believe everyone is still in the meeting room."

Hiccup nodded and allowed Elsa to lead him out of the throne room and down the hall to the meeting room.


	8. Help Comes From All

Hiccup followed Elsa through the halls, his eyes on her snow-white hair. It was vastly different than anything he'd ever seen before; even Ruffnut wasn't that pale of a blonde. It made him wonder if she used dyes in her hair. Waste of pigment, if you asked him.

"So where are we going again?" Hiccup asked.

"The meeting room," Elsa answered. Hiccup also took notice of how she carried herself: her hands folded neatly together at her front, her back straight, her eyes forward. Not only did she look the part of a queen, but she acted like one too. It was very different than how his father--or even his mother, for that matter--conducted himself with other members of the tribe. Maybe queens and chiefs were supposed to act differently. Hiccup didn't know; he'd never met Queen Elsa before now.

"If you don't mind me asking," Hiccup asked, trying to break the unsteady silence, "how long have you been queen?"

Elsa turned her eyes to him for a second, her head remaining still, before looking forward again. "Technically, three years. My parents were killed in a boat sinking when I was eighteen, and as I have no other siblings aside from my younger sister, I was next in command. I had advisors, but I wasn't officially crowned queen as I had not yet come of age. Officially, I have only been queen for about three months, maybe four at the most. Time sort of blurs together after a big event like...like that."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Hiccup said softly. He had felt something similar after Astrid had passed; they days starting to blur together so much that you couldn't tell when one ended and the other began.

"Here we are," Elsa said, stopping at a large set of intricate double doors. She pulled them open, and whatever conversations that were going on inside came to an abrupt halt as everyone's eyes went to the door.

"Queen Elsa, who is that?" asked a girl who Hiccup assumed was the queen of Corona, judging by her clothes. He tried not to stare at the small chameleon perched on her right shoulder, or at the frying pan that hung at her side from a fancy belt around her waist. He didn't judge her choice of weapon; after all, he carried a retractable flaming sword that doubled as an explosive device on his right thigh.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Elsa said, "this is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, the Hope and Heir of the Tribe of Hairy Hooligans. Berk has recently been attacked and the tribe is in dire need of assistance. Hiccup asks that anyone who can will send his tribe supplies for the coming winter. Please include him in the post-meeting conversations and listen to whatever he has to say. Thank you."

Hiccup listened quietly during Elsa's speech. He hadn't exactly come here to help Berk, but Elsa was right. Berk was in dire need of help. With almost half of the resources gone and most of the village destroyed or covered in ice, right on the verge of Devastating Winter...Berk needed help, fast.

Hiccup was quick to strike up conversation with the other representatives. He made fast friends with Queen Rapunzel, talking with her for the better part of a half hour. Hiccup told her about life on Berk (before their current predicament), and she told him about life in a kingdom. She also mentioned that she had a husband named Eugene, and they were expecting a child in mid May. Since she hadn't told Eugene yet, Hiccup helped her brainstorm ideas, as he was always good at the element of surprise. Towards the end of the conversation, Rapunzel agreed to send as many supplies as she could, on as many ships as she could spare. Hiccup thanked her immensely, saying that if there was anything Berk could do in return, he'd make sure they did it.

Next was the French representative, whom Hiccup conversed with entirely in French. The woman, whose name was apparently Gracielle de'Fleur, seemed surprised that a Viking knew French, but she kept the conversation in her native tongue nonetheless. Hiccup didn't miss a single word. Gracielle agreed to send a herd of twenty sheep and fifteen goats by ship to help with Berk's troubles.

Throughout the course of an hour and a half, Hiccup felt he had accumulated enough resources to get Berk through not only this winter but well into next winter as well. Almost everyone had offered their services in some way, whether it was animals or clothing or weapons. Even the Southern Isles had insisted Hiccup accept fifty yaks that would be delivered by ship in a month. None of them could do anything for the ice problems, but the things they could do made Hiccup's heart soar. He wasn't sure he could ever repay them for what they did.

"Well," Elsa said as Hiccup walked over to her. The other representatives were headed to dinner, but Hiccup stayed behind to speak with Elsa. "That was impressive, for someone many of them see as savage warlords."

"I'm not gonna lie, some of us are pretty savage warlords," Hiccup admitted. "I've met more than my fair share of them. But I am deeply grateful that they decided to help me and my tribe. It really means a lot, especially now."

Elsa nodded. "I understand. Your duty to protect your people comes before all else, especially for people in our positions."

Hiccup couldn't bring himself to voice his agreement. He couldn't help but feel guilty; he'd abandoned his tribe for personal reasons. He hadn't been thinking about Berk's wellbeing when he left. He was just trying to get away from the memories of Astrid that still plagued him even here. _Maybe I shouldn't have left,_ Hiccup thought. _Maybe I was being selfish._

_But if I had stayed, Berk wouldn't be getting the help it's getting now._

Hiccup could feel Elsa's eyes on him, as if she was trying to decipher his inner thoughts. Regardless, she pulled him out of his thought trench by saying, "Would you care to join us for dinner?"

Hiccup smiled softly at her. "That would be wonderful."

Elsa smiled back at him and led the way down the hall to the dining area, Hiccup following behind her.


	9. Odd Queen, Odder Heir

At first, Elsa had been terrified about letting Hiccup--a savage, brutal, barbaric Viking--eat with the other well-mannered representatives, but Hiccup had outstanding dinner manners. It was as if the boy had been raised in a castle himself. He was respectful, didn't talk with his mouth full--which was most likely the reason he took such small bites of his food; the chatter never seemed to stop. He also used silverware, which made Elsa's eyebrows shoot up into her bangs. Evidently, this boy did not fit the typical Viking aspect.

 _Who is this man?_ Elsa frequently asked herself throughout the entire duration of the dinner. Elsa was seated at the head of the table, with Anna and Kristoff on her right and Rapunzel on her left. Hiccup was next to Kristoff, and blatantly ignored the odd stares that the blonde man was giving him; instead he entertained himself by having a silent conversation with Rapunzel across the table, both smirking and glancing at Rapunzel's husband. Eugene, who was seated next to Rapunzel, was utterly lost, glancing between his wife and the Viking heir as if trying to figure out what the heck was going on between them.

Hiccup didn't say much during dinner. He spoke only when spoken to, and ate very quietly and politely. He didn't devour his food like some of the Vikings that Elsa had seen in her father's meetings as a girl, and he didn't slurp his drink loudly. Elsa also found it strange how he hadn't asked for an alcoholic beverage. Again, every Viking she'd seen here had always asked for one, and surely Hiccup was old enough, at least where he came from, but he never asked. The Roman representative, whom no one but Elsa could understand since he spoke only Latin, seemed very interested in Hiccup, and the heir surprised Elsa for the umpteenth time that night when he kept a conversation going, in Latin. How many languages did this boy know?

After dinner, the representatives bid each other goodnight and retired to their rooms for the night. Soon, only Elsa and Hiccup were left in the dining room, along with the servants that worked on cleaning the table.

"Well," Elsa said, and Hiccup looked at her, "that was quite...surprising. I see you are not like the other Vikings that have represented your oddly friendly island. Are all Berkians like you?"

Hiccup scoffed. "I wish. My snot-nosed cousin could stand to have some manners, for one. Everyone else can just stand to use a bar of soap."

Elsa laughed. "You have an interesting sense of humor."

"Yeah, I've been told." Hiccup looked at Elsa. "I don't suppose I could spend the night here? It's been a long day."

Elsa nodded. "Of course. There is an empty bedroom down the hall and to the left of here. It should be the only room with the door open."

"Thank you." Hiccup bowed in a respectful yet slightly goofy way. "Goodnight, Queen Elsa." He made his way to the door of the dining hall.

"Goodnight, Sir Hiccup."

Hiccup stopped and looked back at Elsa. "Just Hiccup is fine, Your Majesty. 'Sir' makes me sound important."

Elsa smiled a little. "Very well. Goodnight, Hiccup."

"Goodnight." And with that, he retired to his room.

<><><><><>

The next morning, Elsa donned her light cloak and stepped out of the castle. It was early morning, just barely sunrise, and the young queen was going to take her usual walk around the grounds before breakfast.

But that morning, something caught her attention. A large black shadow flew through the clouds over her head, heading for the stables. Curious, Elsa followed the shadow, remembering that she'd heard footsteps down the hall earlier when all the servants were still asleep.

When she reached the stables, she froze. A large black dragon was rolled over on its back, with Hiccup rubbing its belly as if it was a giant puppy. She thought about saying something, but didn't want the beast to attack.

She didn't have to. Hiccup looked up at her and smiled. "Good morning, my queen."

"Good morning..." Elsa's eyes were planted firmly on the dragon. "Um...if I may ask..."

"Why am I spoiling this large, fire-breathing lizard as if he's a pet?"

Elsa blinked. "Well...yes."

"Simple." Hiccup moved around from behind the dragon and stood beside Elsa. His hair was all askew from the wind, and his cheeks had a pinkish tint to them. "Queen Elsa, meet Toothless."

At the mention of his name, Toothless perked his ears--if that's what they were--and looked at Elsa with large, catlike green eyes. He rolled to his feet and took a step forward, to which Elsa recoiled.

"It's okay," Hiccup reassured her, resting one hand on her back to keep her from running away in a panic. "He won't hurt you. He's just getting to know you."

As Hiccup spoke, Elsa paid more attention to the dragon that was currently sniffing her. Toothless walked in a circle around them before sitting down in front of them, looking remarkably like Sven.

"So..." Elsa nervously rubbed her wrist. "He is gentle?"

"Of course. Here, give me your hand."

"I beg your pardon?"

Hiccup chuckled. "Trust me." He took one of Elsa's hands in his, and Elsa jumped at how warm his hands were. Either that, or hers were just that cold. Hiccup slowly inched her hand towards Toothless's snout, and the dragon sniffed the new hand before resting his nose against it.

"See?" Hiccup took his hand away from Elsa's. "He's tame."

"Apparently." Elsa smiled as she lightly scratched the dragon's nose. Hiccup smiled back at her.


End file.
